Descrizione
When Gino Girolomoni brought the Monastery of Montebello back to life
Gino Girolomoni, former mayor of Isola del Piano and the father of organic farming in Italy, had a dream: not to stand with those who destroy the world, but with those who cultivate, love and protect the world, the earth and nature. And Gino Girolomoni shaped this dream, nurtured it and made it a reality.
The Monastery of Montebello has ancient origins, dating back to the 14th century, as documented by Father Bernardino Pucci, Prior of the Monastery in 1638. A place that benefits from having ‘remained intact and spared from the waters of the universal flood’, as Father Pucci writes – a space covered in greenery, with fertile land for pastures, surrounded by walnut trees, chestnut trees, cypresses and oaks.
The monastery is situated on the Cesane plateau, between Urbino, Fossombrone and Isola del Piano. It was restored from its former state as a ruin by Gino Girolomoni, who decided to turn it into his home, as well as a place for the exchange of ideas and the promotion of rural culture.
Today it is home to the Girolomoni Foundation, which organises cultural activities and live events, the Educational Farm and the Museum of Rural Life ‘In the Footsteps of Our Fathers’, as well as serving as a retreat for those wishing to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life and find refuge in a peaceful setting (the Montebello Monastery also operates as a bed and breakfast, with five guest rooms and two meeting rooms for gatherings or various activities, from yoga to meditation, and a further six rooms at the nearby Locanda Girolomoni).
The Museum, established in the 1970s, is of particular interest; it is divided into two sections: one houses ceramic artefacts and written sources documenting the civilisations that have successively inhabited the Cesane area. The second section comprises tools and implements used by the farming community, such as carts, horse-drawn carriages and wooden ploughs, as well as the tools used by traditional craftsmen, from blacksmiths to stonemasons, from shoemakers to potters.
The museum also features stone mills and a pasta factory, which can be visited by appointment. In 1977, Gino Girolomoni was the principal founder of a cooperative that was one of the first producers to introduce organic farming in the Marche region, in Italy and beyond: indeed, it was not until 1987 that the first European regulation on organic production methods was published. In short, a boundless love for the land, the local area, nature and the world.
